World Cup Winners to Get Hero’s Welcome in Berlin

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The German national soccer team is flying home on Lufthansa's Queen of the Skies with 23 flight attendants on board.

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Deutschland! After a night spent partying with Rihanna and the golden trophy, the German men’s national soccer team—World Cup victors for the fourth time—boarded a flight back to a deliriously happy homeland. Nearly 500,000 supporters are expected to fill Fan Mile tomorrow at Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate, but a few early risers will start the celebration as soon as the team’s plane hits the tarmac.

An observation deck at Berlin’s Tegel Airport will open to the public around 6 a.m., for über-fans who want the first glimpse of the World Cup winners. The team will arrive in style aboard a brand-new Boeing 747-8, Lufthansa’s “Queen of the Skies,” or as we like to call it, "The Big Bird." At a little more than 250 feet, it’s one of the longest planes in civil aviation history (the longest, along with the Airbus A380, until this hybrid airship was introduced in Britain this year). Better yet: This 747-8 comes with 23 flight attendants, says Lufthansa, one for each member of the team. Because that’s how Germany rolls.